2024 NACAT Conference Keynote Speaker

Embracing Technological Change in Automotive Education

The automotive industry is experiencing a seismic shift toward advanced technology vehicles. With government mandates requiring many states to adopt clean transportation plans, the shift toward vehicle electrification has led to the sale of over 1,000,000 EVs in the U.S. in 2023. In addition, technologies such as ADAS, 48-volt systems, Hydrogen technology and other related advancements have begun to reshape our field into an emerging “tech” industry. As these changes occur, the business we have all grown up in is evolving much like the transition from horse-and-carriage to the automobile. Currently the top five sellers of electric vehicles worldwide are companies that many of us don’t recognize the names of, and an American sales leader that was not founded in Detroit. As technology evolves, we face a challenge as educators to adapt to technological change which will ultimately mean changes to our programs. This keynote will empower educators to embrace these changes with a call-to-action to renew our commitments to our students and programs, upskill our abilities as technicians and educators, and prepare the future workforce for the technology of today and tomorrow.

About Dave Macholz

David Macholz is the Assistant Dean for Transportation Programs at Suffolk County Community College where he oversees eight OEM training programs. David is a doctoral student in the Workforce Development PhD program at Old Dominion University and is an ECMC Foundation post-Secondary Research Doctoral Fellow with an award-winning research agenda that includes automotive certification and credentialing.

He has been a writer for Motor Age Magazine, and a program manager and Instructor for Worldpac for the last ten years. David’s teaching career has included time as both a secondary and post-secondary instructor. NACAT played a pivotal role in his career as he attended the 2009 conference as a first-year instructor, an experience that put him on the path to where he is today.

In 2023, David Founded Advanced Vehicle Technology Group (AVTG), an organization providing technical training and services designed to empower technicians, educators, and related stakeholders as they adapt to emerging vehicle technologies.